Doctor Who's series 33 opener Asylum of the Daleks received its
premiere at London's BFI on Tuesday night. And as has become
traditional in these situations, that's about all we can really reveal.

As soon as the closing credits rolled, and the familiar music chimed in,
Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat made his now-familiar plea to the
journalists, fans and bloggers assembled not to give away his secrets.
Once again, we'll be respecting that plea â€“ because one of the things we
can tell you is that Asylum Of The Daleks will have been worth the wait.

The big line with this series is "movie poster". They've realised that quite
wonderfully with the pre-publicity, a poster which indulges the sci-fi
show's finest B-movie traditions: the Doctor, Amy and Rory reflected in
the eye-stalk of one of Skaro's worst. And while the movie poster line is
meant to mean "blockbuster of the week", what it also means is "no
two-parters" and "no series long story arc".

That will delight those who found last year's River Song saga too
overwrought, but its actual thrill lies somewhere else. It's usually a
back-handed compliment to say something was short yet felt long. But
that wasn't what was going on here either.

Introducing the Asylum, BBC drama boss Ben Stephenson said that this
series was a Hollywood movie each week. Afterwards, Moffat told me that
the intention here is compressed storytelling â€“ 90 minutes squeezed into
45. Actually, Asylum Of The Daleks manages to do a lot more than most
of the classic series four-parters. It certainly manages to do more than,
say, last year's The Rebel Flesh two-parter.

So what can we tell you about Asylum Of The Daleks? As keen
web-heads will know, it features every single model of Dalek in known
existence â€“ up to and including the Special Weapons model created for
the underappreciated Sylvester McCoy story, Remembrance Of The Daleks, and the
replica that Russell T Davies had made for his hallway,
for which Moffat did the ultimate favour to his predecessor in making it
part of the canon.

We catch a glimpse of a new planet, and a very old one. There is a
choice of hairstyles from Amy Pond. Somebody gets to ask "what
colour?" simply because "there are no good questions left". Amy Pond
says "Geronimo!" and no, it still doesn't work as a catchphrase.
Something has happened to the Ponds, and you won't like it. A hairdryer
is used as a makeshift wind machine.

It's a fun episode, as Dalek ones always need to be, but there is also
burnt flesh to truly horrify. And, as it seems there always must be in
Moffat Doctor Who scripts these days, there is a woman who is not all
she seems. She will shake you to the core, yet as far as we know, no,
she is not The Rani.

So, here we are again for another year of the Guardian's Who blog. The
same rules apply as ever; I will spoil nothing, but promise to tease
everything. And you lot play nice. Last year, we not only worked the
whole thing out, but debated life, the universe and everything every
Saturday night. The return of that makes me thrilled and terrified in equal
measure. Which is, of course, exactly how Doctor Who is supposed to
make you feel. Welcome back...